Reporting Scores

After students take the Smarter Balanced assessments, their results are reported in two primary ways: scaled scores and achievement levels. On this page, you can learn more about scores, as well as how achievement levels were determined and how they are used by educators and parents.

The Reporting System

Scaled Scores

A scaled score is the student’s overall numerical score. These scores fall on a continuous scale (from approximately 2000 to 3000) that increases across grade levels. Scaled scores can be used to illustrate students’ current level of achievement and their growth over time. When combined together across a student population, scaled scores can also describe school- and district-level changes in performance, as well as reveal gaps in achievement among different groups of students.

Achievement Levels

Based on their scaled scores, students fall into one of four categories of performance called achievement levels. The tables below show the range of scaled scores for each achievement level for mathematics and English language arts/literacy:

Mathematics

Grade

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

3

<2381

2381–2435

2436–2500

>2500

4

<2411

2411–2484

2485–2548

>2548

5

<2455

2455–2527

2528–2578

>2578

6

<2473

2473–2551

2552–2609

>2609

7

<2484

2484–2566

2567–2634

>2634

8

<2504

2504–2585

2586–2652

>2652

11

<2543

2543–2627

2628–2717

>2717

English Language Arts/Literacy

Grade

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

3

<2367

2367–2431

2432–2489

>2489

4

<2416

2416–2472

2473–2532

>2532

5

<2442

2442–2501

2502–2581

>2581

6

<2457

2457–2530

2531–2617

>2617

7

<2479

2479–2551

2552–2648

>2648

8

<2487

2487–2566

2567–2667

>2667

11

<2493

2493–2582

2583–2681

>2681

Achievement Level Descriptors

Achievement levels are defined by Achievement Level Descriptors, the specifications for what knowledge and skills students display at each level (i.e., Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, and Level 4). We refer to these categories as Levels, but each Smarter Balanced member state refers to them in different ways, such as “novice, developing, proficient, and advanced.” Students performing at Levels 3 and 4 are considered on track to demonstrating the knowledge and skills necessary for college and career readiness. Detailed Achievement Level Descriptors were written by teachers and college faculty.

The Reporting ALDs document (PDF) describe students’ overall achievement for the English language arts/literacy and mathematics summative assessments. Please note states may choose to alter the descriptions or name descriptors.

How were achievement levels determined?

Through a series of online and in-person activities, educators, parents, and community leaders helped ensure the assessments are based on fair and rigorous expectations for students. The process consisted of three phases:

An In-Person Panel with educators and other stakeholders working in grade-level teams deliberated and made recommendations for the threshold scores of the four achievement levels.

The Cross-Grade Review Committee, a subset of the In-Person Panel, examined recommendations across all grades to consider the reasonableness of the system of cut scores.

About Achievement Level Setting

All Smarter Balanced members were actively involved in setting these new achievement levels. Teachers, parents, higher education faculty, business leaders, and other community members from all of the Smarter Balanced states took part in a highly inclusive, consensus-based process that asked participants to closely examine assessment content and detailed Achievement Level Descriptors to determine threshold scores for each achievement level. Educators who work with English language learners and students with disabilities also were included to help ensure that the achievement levels are fair and appropriate for all students. In addition to the nearly 500 in-person panelists, more than 2,500 people volunteered their time to participate in the online panel.

Approximations of Performance

Although Achievement Level Descriptors are intended to aid interpretation of the four categories, they are less precise than scaled scores for describing student growth or changes in achievement gaps among groups of students since they do not reveal changes of student scores within the four levels. Thus, achievement levels should be understood as representing approximations of levels at which students demonstrate mastery of a set of concepts and skills.

Not the Only Measure

There are other measures that students, teachers, and parents can also use to help evaluate academic progress.

Achievement levels are a reporting feature that is federally required under the No Child Left Behind Act, and one that has become familiar to many educators. However, characterizing a student’s achievement solely in terms of falling in one of four categories is an oversimplification. Achievement levels should serve only as a starting point for discussion about the performance of students and of groups of students. There are other measures that students, teachers, and parents can also use to help evaluate the academic progress of students and schools, such as scaled scores, growth models, and portfolios of student work.

In other words, achievement levels should not be interpreted as infallible predictors of students’ futures. They must be continuously validated and should be used only in the context of the multiple sources of information that educators have about students and schools.

College-Ready Scores

Achievement Level Descriptors are connected to the expectations high schools and colleges have for what students should know to be ready for college. In particular, a score at or above “Level 3” in grade 11 is meant to suggest conditional evidence that a student is ready for entry-level, transferable, credit-bearing college courses. Students may have to complete additional requirements in Grade 12. Explore the list of colleges that accept Smarter Balanced scores and read their policies for score use.